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The film, based of the novel of the same title by Dorothy Allison from 1992, follows the life of an illegitimate (bastard) child called named Ruth Anne "Bone" Boatwright (played by 12-year-old Jena Malone) in South Carolina.

Despite the shame of raising an illegitimate child, her mother Anney loves Bone and does her best to take care of her. The major conflict in the story comes when Anney marries a man named Glen who begins to both physically and sexually abuse Bone. Despite the abuse, Anney finds herself unable to leave Glen.

Durin Glen's day off Bone and her half-sister are running around, causing Bone to accidentally knock over Glen's tools as he works on the car. Glen grabs her and tells her to cool it, saying "you're a girl, not a racehorse" before letting her go. Bone walks off, mockingly repeating it, causing Glen to lose his temper. He chases after her, calling her a "little bitch", and picks her up. He man-handles her to the bathroom as Bone tries to apologize. Anney tries to follow, but finds the door locked. She asks Glen to open the door as Glen removes his belt and approaches a terrified Bone. Bone again says she's sorry, only for Glen to reply that she isn't as sorry as she was going to be. As Anney begs from outside, Glen lectures Bone saying he's been waiting to long to do this. The thwack of the belt is then heard multiple times as the camera cuts to Anney telling Glen to stop it. He does and opens the door. As Anney forces him out he defends himself by saying Bone is his girl too. Anney then comforts a crying Bone. As she does, she pulls Bone's skirt up slightly to see the redness on her thighs. She then asks what Bone did to make Glen so mad.

Bone is assisting her half-sister in preparing for the aunt's funeral when Glen confronts her, saying that he has been calling for her to help her mother. Bone protests that she hadn't heard him. Glen gets angry at Bone's "sass", explaining that he is the boss of his own house. Anney attempts to calm and stop him but can do little as Glen pushes Bone into the the bathroom, shutting Anney outside. He takes off his belt and pushes Bone towards the sink. He commands Bone "not to say a word" as the girl lifts her dress and grips the sink. He then proceeds to belt her (in total thirteen are heard before the camera cuts). A close up of Bone's face is shown as she cries in pain before the camera switches to Anney crying outside the bathroom.